Salt Lake Tribune Home & Garden Show Eye Candy

Posted on March 17, 2012

And this time I don’t mean me with Ahmed! The show was BACK this year with huge crowds and great ideas. One change was that there were more small landscapes by landscapers I haven’t seen at the show before. It was great to see how much interest they could pack into some pretty tight spaces!

OMG Landscaping- Best Small Booth (IMO)

They set up the landscaper dream gardens a little differently this year and I liked the change. Instead of a hodge podge, they created an overall radial layout then had the landscapers create dream gardens within their individual sections. This gave it some cohesive structure yet still allowed the individual companies to showcase their talents. The linking element between all booths was a massive paver walkway/display by Belgard Pavers.

During previous shows, the other exhibitors (including me), always joked about the competition among the landscapers to build the tallest waterfall- as though their manhood depending on winning that unspoken battle! This year the vibe was MUCH different as the design FELT more collaborative and less, well attention whorish.

Faux Grass Vest

Okay, perhaps just a bit attention whorish- afterall, it’s tough to compete with so many vendors for people to look at. You’d be surprised at how many people stopped to talk to the faux grass guys near us because of the ‘stylish’ fake lawn vest! Whatever it takes!

It could also be because the two biggest companies who provided the most competition have been driven under by the economic collapse- perhaps there is just less cockiness overall now as those still in the game don’t take it for granted? There was certainly less grandiose show in some ways but I felt like it was more accessible to a greater number of potential clients as a result. In any case, I thought it looked great!

Small water feature by Sunline Landscaping?

Lots of small water features- much more manageable for homeowners than ponds. I think the prettiest water features goes to Stonescapes who used a couple hundred flats of Scotch Moss on their exhibit. Note: that would totally FAIL in a real Utah setting but it’s the Home Show in March and you’ve gotta use what you can find that makes things feel lush- it’s about dreaming, not horticultural accuracy.

Incredible hollow rock turned waterfall by Stonescapes

More Stonescapes rock accents

Gorgeous path by Stonescapes

And we may as well finish off by dreaming big- this landscape featured a ginormous fireplace, pergola with seating on the opposite side, a putting green and more.

Gorgeous fireplace by Sunline Landscaping

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Cynthia holds a degree in Landscape Architecture and a minor in Horticulture. She is an advocate of all things garden and design and enjoys writing and lecturing about gardens, DIY and community involvement.

stonescape has a utah seeded moss that can withstand the weather it comes back every year. they have great water features but you gotta check out their firepits and stone work tho its amazing. http://www.stonescapesutah.com